Just as a suggestion...
I have a website where old messages began to become a problem as well. However, many people do have important messages (for whatever reason, lol), so as a nice gesture, I created a "Saved Stuff" mailbox where they can place X number of messages (be it 5 or whatever) in that will never be deleted as long as they're in there. I also allowed users to upgrade this number by donating.
It really makes no difference to me - I hardly ever use PMs (I use email and MSN), but just something to consider.
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